Tuesday, Nov. 03, 2009

O'Fallon swears in new alderman

Snyder replaces Medford in Ward 4

O'FALLON -- David Snyder, chairman of city's Planning Commission, was sworn in Monday to replace Ward 4 Alderman Allen Medford on the City Council.

"We had two great candidates and his level of involvement was the only thing that really set them apart," Mayor Gary Graham said of his decision to appoint Snyder. "It was really one of those things where I couldn't make a wrong decision. While it was tough to decide, I knew either one of them would do a really great job."

Snyder, 57, is a retired Air Force pilot who moved to the city in 1990. He and his wife, Margo, have a 23-year-old son, Brian. He currently works as Deputy Director for Tri-Cor Industries, of O'Fallon, which oversees the information technology employees and contracts for The Air Force's Air Mobility Command at Scott Air Force Base.

"From my son's tee ball and soccer teams, Boy Scouts all the way to the Planning Commission, I have been volunteering since I got here," Snider said. "Being an alderman, to me, is just another way I can serve my community."

Snyder said he is honored to fill the seat of Medford, a third term alderman who resigned last month to return to his native South Carolina, where his siblings live.

"We were neighbors and go back a long way," Snyder said. "I have a lot of respect for him. His shoes are going to be tough to fill.

Medford has a progressive form of multiple sclerosis that requires him to use an electric wheelchair and a van with a lift that is operated by hand controls. He said, since his wife passed away a few years ago, that he hasn't had the support system he needs to deal with his health issues.

The Planning Commission, an advisory board that hears zoning and other development-related requests and makes recommendations to city leaders, has a history of spawning aldermen.

Ward 7 Alderman David Cozad, who was appointed in July to replace Thomas Faulkner when he abruptly resigned his seat, was also plucked from the Planning Commission roster.

In other business Monday, the City Council approved the hiring of Bernardin-Lochmueller & Associates Inc. for $12,400 to handle land acquisition for the rebuilding of the intersection of Porter and Simmons roads.